Residents in Thomasville could soon have another place to buy their spirituous liquors, without entering a strip mall.

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The Thomasville City Council recently heard a presentation from members of the Thomasville ABC Board concerning a building fund resolution that would allow the board to put aside a portion of its gross receipts in an account to build a standalone ABC building.

The board hopes to reserve no more than $1 million in gross receipts as a fund for specific capital improvements, including but not limited to land, building and equipment. The city would receive 3.5 percent of those receipts up front.

“We would need a resolution from the council to allow us to take part of our working capital account to an account that would allow us to purchase and build our own standalone store,” said Tom Holiday, member of the ABC board. “We know that boards that are doing the best for their municipalities are those that have their own stores. When you are paying rent, it is a great expense, and when you tell people you want to rent the space for a ABC store, the price goes up considerably.”

The board currently pays about $3,300 per month to rent the store on Randolph Street. It has $470,000 to put in the new fund if approved by the council at its regular meeting tonight. The meeting will be the second floor of the Thomasville Police Department at 7 p.m.

In other business, the council tonight will consider a Downtown Commercial District Tax Incentive Program and resolution to revitalize the area to make it more attractive to investors. The grant will increase the property valuations and make it easier for property owners to apply for grants. The grant would be for five years and would offset the cost of taxes for the property owners.

“Most people who study urban areas agree that the downtown area is key to the whole city,” said City Manager Kelly Craver. “The downtown area has been eroding for a couple of years. There has been some reinvestment downtown and building area being utilized for retail, but to further stimulate that, we are considering the tax incentive.”